Ribble Urban 725s

This is my second single speed. The first was a converted Carlton Criterium, and I loved riding it. It got nicked out of our back garden, so I was hankering after a replacement singlespeed runaround for years, and finally took the plunge on this beauty with the cycle to work scheme. I was attracted by the heritage of the manufacturer and the look of the bike.

On looks, I was not disappointed - it's smooth and slick, no lumps or bumps (not even for attachments!), brake cables run internally, beautiful glossy minimal grey paint job. I opted for it to ship with gatorskins, so even the tyres were slick and smooth. The tyres didn't last long by the way - they managed about 1000 miles before they were shot.

In terms of performance, I'm chucking 25 miles or so a day at the bike on my cross-town commute. This includes a stretch of north London canal (possibly the reason for the early death of the gatorskins). It's mostly flat, but there are a few hills, which is a test for the singlespeed (which is how I ride - although you can just 'flip' the back wheel to a fixed gear). So the first real thing to point out about the performance is that the gear is HUGE - 3:1, 48:16. This makes cruising on flat supremely pleasurable. My top speed is fast! Like, *really* fast. This is aided by the light nature of the frame. There is obviously a downside to this massive gear ratio: hills and starts. You've got to attack the hills on this bike. Hit them hard at the bottom and build up some momentum, because the massive gear will stop you dead if you slow too much. And if you are forced to stop on a hill because of traffic or something, you might as well get off the bike and walk. It's almost impossible to get the bike going from a stand-still on a steep gradient, It's also not the fastest at the lights. I stand on the pedals and crank hard, and I can get a decent take-off, but I can see how it's not for everybody.

Whilst we're on the downsides, the handlebars are too wide for my liking, and I would prefer drops, but the long top-tube might make this tricky. I am riding a small frame though, so I might get away with upgrading to drops at some point. As I said before, I had to replace the gatorskins and have moved to marathons which give me a bit more protection on the canal (less danger of a sharp bit of gravel piercing through the kevlar).

All in all, I love this bike. It really shifts. Because I like cranking hard and smashing the flat at high cruising speeds, because I travel light and can fit what I need in a backpack, because I don't mind getting a wet backside in terrible conditions. If any of those bizarre and marginally masochistic tendencies don't apply to you, choose something with a lower gear and sensible mounting options.

If you are looking for a fixed gear/single speed this is a great bike. The frame is beautiful and light (my old bike feels like a tank now). The gearing is on the higher side and this bike can be fast. you can always swap the rear cog to something easier if you live in a hilly area. Tried it on London roads and through some forest paths and it handles well. Not a fan of the grips but thats an easy fix.